Lead Scrubbed From Paris streets as Notre-Dame Work Resumes

Specialists shoring up fire-damaged Notre-Dame Cathedral returned Monday to the Paris site for the first time in nearly a month, this time wearing disposable underwear and other protective gear after a delay prompted by fears of lead contamination.A worker sprays a gel on the ground to absorb lead during a decontamination operation at Saint Benoit school near Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris, Aug. 8, 2019.Meanwhile, cleanup teams swept, sprayed and vacuumed neighboring streets Monday to scrub away any lead left over from the April blaze that decimated Notre-Dame's roof and toppled its spire. Toxic dust spewed into the air as hundreds of tons of lead melted in the fire. At the cathedral itself, activity resumed Monday under strict new lead-protection measures for the stonemasons, cleanup workers and scientists working on the monument, according to the Culture Ministry. They include throwaway full-body clothing, obligatory showers and a new decontamination zone to ensure that no one tracks pollution outside the site. The workers are clearing out hazardous debris and studying and consolidating the medieval monument — a crucial first step to prepare the fragile cathedral for a yearslong, multimillion-euro reconstruction effort. But even this first step is taking longer than expected because of lead worries. A firefighter uses a hose as Notre-Dame cathedral is burning in Paris, April 15, 2019.Some environmental activists and residents say French authorities underplayed the lead poisoning risks in the aftermath of the blaze. Under pressure from labor inspectors, the Paris regional administration ordered the consolidation work halted in July pending new worker-protection measures. Labor inspectors approved the changes and allowed the work to resume starting Monday. Other lead-prevention operations are also underway in the area around Notre-Dame. Experts are carrying out a deep clean of neighborhood schools and are spraying chemical agents and vacuuming... If you wish to read this full breaking news headline, plus more articles from around Thailand and Asia like, Lead Scrubbed From Paris streets as Notre-Dame Work Resumes, simply click on
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